Hello Dr. Asness,
Thank you for your exploration of the myths of healthcare however I would highly encourage you to explore and offer into the public arena positive solution ideas instead of quibbles about people's perceptions of the debate. Moreover I think you gloss over some of the most important, salient topics to people affected by this debate and that is bankruptcy and denial of coverage (and their link). Granted that you shield yourself in an excuse of 'because I lack the expertise to recommend the detailed practical steps that would be productive' but frankly that is lame at this point in time when it seems most have recognized that, at the very least, the status quo simply must change in this area.
Now to our point of agreement: I do worry about the fact that we are the innovators in the arena of healthcare and have allowed for new drugs and treatments to be produced. That said I worry more about risk/reward and seeing my fellow citizens die or slip into bankruptcy thanks to health issues more. It is a delicate trade off however taken as a whole when I still do want to see new drugs and treatments to be produced.
But here is my problem: the tool of capitalism we have in our quiver is simply not appropriate when it comes to healthcare. The tool of capitalism is a blunt instrument that does some things very well (provide for innovation) but fails in other arenas when the supply and demand curve breaks down. For instance if you or I was to come down with some terrible malady tomorrow we would not have the flexibility to shop around nor wait for the price to drop for our treatment. It is inflexible. Unfortunately our country and our society takes this exceptional tool of capitalism and extends it far too extremely (hmmm... are we being somewhat extreme like the religious fighters we are at war with?) into areas, like healthcare, where it simply is not appropriate.
So I would offer you this thought: where capitalism is an incredibly useful tool, like a hammer, it probably does have a part to play in the solution to this riddle but it simply cannot be the solution. We tried it and it fails for way too many of us. Maybe we need a scalpel (public preventative care clinics, vouchers, etc.) in some key areas? Get creative and offer some good ideas.
Have a good weekend
